Carl Grimes/Chandler Riggs Imagines

Missing Carl x Reader~Vanishing Hope

It was the wee hours of the morning. You sat alone in your cell, tears staining your cheeks. It had been a week since your crush, Carl, left with Daryl and Glenn on a supply run and you hadn't heard anything since. You'd been doing this for the past few days, crying in the dead of night. It was the only time you were able to show any emotion and not have anyone question what was wrong with you. You gathered up every ounce of optimism you could, and kept reminding yourself that Carl was practically and expert with a gun and that he was fine, but those thoughts were constantly knocked down by thoughts of him being torn to pieces by the snarling monsters roaming outside the fences.

For hours on end, you sat on the edge of your small cot, either crying softly or so violently that you had to cover your mouth with your hands to muffle the sobs, making sure that nobody in the cells beside you could hear you. Your body ached from constantly clutching your chest in agony, or siphoning all your energy and falling into the thin mattress. Whenever you tried to stop, a disturbingly vivid image of Carl being torn apart caused you to get worked up all over again. You truly wanted to stop, but something inside just wouldn't allow you to.

>>>

Another painful night had finally ended and the sun had rose high in the sky, you quietly stepped out of your cell, hair a tangled mess and dark circles developed under your puffy eyes. You made your way into Cell Block A, receiving no questions about your horrid appearance as you sat down beside your friend Beth.

"Hey (F/N), are you alright?" She asked. "You look as if you didn't sleep at all."

You slightly smiled and nodded your head before taking a swig of the warm distilled water that had been sitting in the plastic bottle for god knows how long. You glanced up and realized that the majority of the group was staring at you. Practically everyone knew about your childish crush on Carl, but nobody had bothered to speak to you except for Beth and a few of the smaller children. They all knew that Carl would most likely be fine if he was with Daryl and Glenn, but they didn't seem to have the strength to tell you themselves, considering the level of heartbreak you were currently in.

"Do you think she'll be okay?" Maggie asked, somewhat whispering but it was evidently loud enough that you had no problem eavesdropping.

"I'm not sure..." Bob said. "Since Carl left with Glenn and Daryl last week, she's just been cooped up in her cell. "Do you think he's...?"

"No, no I don't think so." She sighed. "If he's still with them, he's probably alright."

"Why can't she just believe that he's okay?"

You had finally had enough of what they were saying and got up quickly, rushing back to your cell and threw yourself down onto the lumpy cot resting in the corner. A few tears accidentally rolled down your cheeks, and at that moment, you couldn't take it anymore. The fake smiles, pretending that everything was okay. You were too emotionally burdened and didn't ever want to leave the comfort of your cramped cell, so that's exactly what you did.

>>>

You weren't kidding yourself when you said that you never wanted to leave your cell. Luckily, you didn't take in very much food so you never really had to use the restroom. Beth understood that you needed time to yourself, so she would mostly leave a little food by the entrance and nothing beyond that. It was about noon when you heard a slight clang of the thick metal bars and groaned in response.

"Hey (F/N)." Beth said, smiling gently through them. "Are you alright? You haven't been out of your cell in a few days."

"That depends." You said casually. "Are they back yet?"